Questions and confusion swirled Monday about the future employment of Stroudsburg School District Superintendent John Toleno.

School Board President Richard Pierce and Vice President Bruce Stewart met with Toleno Monday morning to discuss “irregularities that took place when the Stroudsburg Area School Board extended Dr. Toleno's contract in 2011,” Pierce said in a prepared statement.

News of the meeting quickly spread.

What followed was an outpouring of concern from students on social media, as well as frantic phone calls from parents to various school board members asking if the superintendent had been fired.

“Dr. Toleno is still our superintendent and we were discussing with Dr. Toleno issues relating to the evaluation of his performance and concerns expressed by certain board members,” Pierce said in a written statement.

“The meeting that took place this morning did not, and could not have fired Dr. Toleno. A firing could only take place if we were to observe the strict provisions of the school code, and if the board itself were to take action in issuing charges and giving Dr. Toleno due process.”

Toleno did not immediately return phone calls for comment on Monday.

According to several school board members, Pierce and Stewart met with Toleno at 7 a.m. Monday and told the superintendent his contract may not be extended when it comes up for renewal.

Board members Judith Magann and John Jakobsen said they both talked to Toleno on Monday after hearing about the meeting.

“The board began discussing the renewal of the administrators' contracts last week, and in the discussion we were to have a meeting to determine which things in (Toleno's) contract we were interested in either negotiating or discussing,” Magann said.

Toleno was told he would be finished with the Stroudsburg School District when his contract ends, Magann said.

The school board never met as a whole to discuss Toleno's contract, nor was the entire board aware that Pierce and Stewart would be meeting with Toleno on Monday, she said.

“We were told he was let go this morning,” said Jakobsen on Monday.

Jakobsen said he became aware of the issue after receiving more than a dozen phone calls from concerned community members and parents.

“Toleno said he was let go. I talked to him at 7:30 a.m.,” Jakobsen said.

School board member Robert Yarnall found out about the issue when he received a text message from his son, who is a student at the high school.

“The last meeting any board members had as a group was before last Wednesday's meeting. The last agreed upon thing was we were going to meet as a board with our leadership team to discuss contracts,” Yarnall said.

He believes the full board should have been notified if Pierce and Stewart were going to meet with the superintendent.

“I can't go into specifics because it's a personnel issue, but the last thing was we were going to meet with the leadership as a team, as a group,” Yarnall said.

Several board members said there is an issue with Toleno's “commission” from when his contract was extended in 2011.

According to Jim Buckheit, executive director of the Pennsylvania Association of School Administrators, in addition to having a contract outlining terms of compensation, job description and evaluation procedures to be undertaken by the school board, a superintendent must also receive a “commission.”

“Because the superintendent is considered a 'commissioned officer of the state,' they sort of have this dual role, working for the school district, but they also have an obligation to the state,” Buckheit said.

A commission is a formal process issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Education which ensures the superintendent meets all the necessary qualifications for the job.

In order to get a commission, the superintendent must fill out an application, which is signed off by the school board president and school board secretary.

The superintendent then has to go before a judge and take an oath of office.

Once the superintendent takes the oath and has the signed application, it is sent to the State Department of Education, Buckheit said.

The state then reviews the superintendent's application, making sure all procedures have been followed, he's eligible, and has the proper certifications to serve as superintendent.

“If everything is fine, the State Secretary of Education signs a certificate and sends it back to the school board secretary saying this person can serve in the position as superintendent,” Buckheit said.

When reached for comment on Monday, officials at the State Department of Education did not immediately have information available on Toleno's commission.

His certification to serve as superintendent is current and valid, however.

Certifications are separate from commissions, however, Buckheit said.

Many certifications don't have any sort of expiration date.

A superintendent may need to occasionally be recommissioned however, such as in the case of a contract extension, he said.

“In Pennsylvania, you can get a three-year-contract and up to a two-year extension, but anything beyond that you have to get recommissoned,” said Pierce, when asked whether there was any issue with Toleno's commission.

Pierce declined to comment further on the commission issue.

Toleno was hired by the school district in July 2007.

In August 2009, the school board approved an extension of Toleno's contract through June 30, 2014, as per the terms and conditions of the original contract.

In 2011, the school board approved extending Toleno's contract by one year — through June 2015 — in exchange for giving up the majority of his anticipated pay raise for the 2011-12 school year.

Toleno was among a group of three administrators, eight principals and eight assistant principals who took the deal.

At that time, Toleno's salary was $161,361, and he was anticipating a $7,254 raise.

According to the deal, administrators and principals would receive 25 paychecks at their current salary, and one paycheck including a single fraction of their total anticipated raise.

So instead of a $7,254 raise, Toleno accepted a small raise of $279, bringing his annual salary to $161,640.

It was not clear on Monday evening whether Toleno has received any other pay raises since then.

Also noted in Toleno's contract is a clause for reappointment.

“The board shall provide the Superintendent with periodic opportunities to discuss Superintendent-Board relationships and shall inform him at least annually of any inadequacies perceived by the Board,” the contract says.

According to state law, if the board decides not to renew the superintendent's contract, they must notify him in writing by certified mail no later than 150 days prior to the expiration of his last year.